


A Second Set of Eyes

by imafriendlydalek



Category: The Losers (2010)
Genre: Alternate Universe, First Meetings, Glasses, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-11
Updated: 2019-05-11
Packaged: 2020-03-01 03:20:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,106
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18791947
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/imafriendlydalek/pseuds/imafriendlydalek
Summary: “It’s just, I need to pick out new glasses since I broke my frames yesterday and my backup pair is like five years old so I can’t really see with them anymore, but I can’t actually see without my glasses on, so I don’t know if these look okay or not, and usually I’d just take selfies and then send them to Jess, that’s my sister, but she’s in Barbados, so I was wondering if, maybe, you could tell me if these look okay? Like a second set of eyes?”





	A Second Set of Eyes

**Author's Note:**

  * Translation into Русский available: [Взгляд со стороны](https://archiveofourown.org/works/22388074) by [WTF_The_Losers_Comics_2020](https://archiveofourown.org/users/WTF_The_Losers_Comics_2020/pseuds/WTF_The_Losers_Comics_2020)



“Hey, can I ask you for a favor real quick?”

Cougar stopped mid-step on his way to work and turned around to the source of the question - a man a few years younger than himself, with dark blond hair that looked like it had been carefully cropped at one point but had since grown out. He wore a black t-shirt, stretched just a bit too tightly across a muscular chest, that offered, in faded white letters, “FREE LICKS.”

Cougar raised an eyebrow and started to move away, not wanting to know what kind of favor the man with the free licks needed, when he noticed a price tag hanging from the man’s glasses. Which might have been odd, except they were outside that optician that had just opened a few weeks ago, and the man was squinting oddly.

“It’s just, I need to pick out new glasses since I broke my frames yesterday and my backup pair is like five years old so I can’t really see with them anymore, but I can’t actually see without my glasses on, so I don’t know if these look okay or not, and usually I’d just take selfies and then send them to Jess, that’s my sister, but she’s in Barbados and she’d kill me if I send her that many pictures because she doesn't have roaming data and the charges for that are obscene, and also I forgot my phone at home, so I was wondering if, maybe, you could tell me if these look okay? Like a second set of eyes?” The man held up a hand to his mouth and added in a stage whisper “I’d ask the salesdude, but I think we got off on the wrong foot and he’ll tell me anything looks good just to get rid of me.”

Cougar couldn’t quite stifle his snicker. Yeah, he could see why the man’s antics might have turned the salesperson against him, given the way the man gestured erratically as he spoke. Not ideal in a small shop full of glasses perched precariously on display racks.

A quick glance at the clock on the sign outside the bank told Cougar he still had about half an hour before he had to be at work. He’d been planning to stop for some coffee before he went in, but he found himself oddly intrigued by the man with the inappropriate t-shirt, at least enough to settle for the watery coffee from the machine at work instead.

Cougar tilted his head and nodded. “Okay,” he replied, and gestured for the man to lead him into the store.

The man’s face lit up. “Oh, awesome! Thank you so much, this is great. I haven’t actually bought glasses in years, so this is new for me. Just always got the military-issued ones. But I got out last year, so …” The man’s voice trailed off as he pulled open the door for Cougar to go inside. “I’m Jake, by the way.”

“Cougar,” Cougar replied as he stepped through the door. It was a tiny shop, walls full with floor-to-ceiling rows of glasses. There was a small counter in the back corner, and behind it sat a disgruntled optician.

“Welcome,” the man scowled.

Cougar simply nodded in response. 

“Is that, like, your _real_ name or a really badass nickname?” Jake asked, somewhere behind Cougar.

Cougar just smiled as he handed Jake a pair of glasses, a light plastic frame with blue earpieces. Jake looked slightly startled at first, then quickly shoved the glasses onto his face. He grinned at Cougar by way of asking if they looked alright. Cougar shook his head, and Jake removed the glasses, putting them back on the display with a slight frown. Cougar handed him another pair and the process repeated. 

They’d gone through about twenty pairs when they finally found the right ones, a thin metal frame with round lenses. On anyone else, they might have screamed ‘Harry Potter wannabe,’ but on Jake, they just kind of worked. Along the way, Cougar had learned that Jake had recently left the armed forces and taken a job as an IT specialist in the civilian sector. Which explained the bold t-shirt untrimmed hair. Cougar ran a hand idly through his own hair, which he hadn’t cut since he’d left the army five years ago. He knew a thing or two about how good it felt to get back the freedom to make one’s own choices about appearance and one’s body.

Jake’s face had practically lit up when Cougar had mentioned that he had also served, and the sight of it sent something surging through Cougar’s body. It had been a while since he had felt it, but there it was, interest stirring. He wanted to see Jake grin like that again. He wanted to learn why Jake wore shirts like that. He wanted to get to know this ridiculous man, who had somehow navigated his way along the chain of command although he was quite obviously not the “cog in the wheel” type of guy. He wanted - yeah, he wanted.

But for now, he needed. To get to work, specifically. He was going to be a little late as it was, but it had been worth it.

“I have to go,” Cougar said, cutting Jake off in the middle of a diatribe about - tiger sharks? “Work,” he added in clarification as Jake's smile faltered.

“Oh, okay,” Jake said, his tone now more subdued. “Well, thanks for your help. I really appreciate it.”

Cougar was about to reply, “You’re welcome,” when Jake added, “Wish I could repay you somehow for the favor.”

He grinned at Cougar hopefully, and Cougar felt a smile tug at the corner of his mouth. 

“Cup of coffee? Tomorrow?”

There it was, that grin again. “That sounds great. I love coffee. Nectar of the gods. I mean, it’s not a nectar, it’s a brew made of powdered beans, which is kind of weird if you think about it, but -” Jake stopped himself mid-sentence, probably because he saw the way Cougar was shaking his head in amusement. “Anyway, yes, cup of coffee, tomorrow, at the place across the street.”

Cougar nodded. “See you tomorrow, Jake” he said before turning and heading toward the door.

“See you tomorrow, Cougar,” Jake called after Cougar. “If my glasses come in by then. Otherwise I won’t see you. I’ll be there, of course, but I won’t be able to see you.”

Cougar tugged his hat down and smiled to himself as he stepped back into the sunshine outside. Yeah, that was absolutely worth being a little late to work for.

**Author's Note:**

> This is a combination of two prompts:  
> -a while back, someone on the Discord (don't remember who?) asked for a fic about That Shirt from What's Your Number, because it is a very Jensen shirt...  
> -my brother needed new glasses and my mom said he should ask someone in the store help him and of course my brain turned that into a fic meet-cute...
> 
> I wrote this in like half an hour. Sorry for any mistakes. Just needed to get it out! (Since I haven't written/completed anything in like a year)


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